The Grossglockner High Alpine Road (Großglockner Hochalpenstraße) is Austria's highest surfaced pass road: 48 km / 30 miles and 36 bends from Bruck in Salzburg to Heiligenblut in Carinthia, crossing the Fuscher Törl at 2,428 m / 7,966 ft and the Hochtor Pass at 2,504 m / 8,215 ft. It is a toll road, and the operator states it is open from the start of May until the start of November, with a night-time driving ban outside published hours. It was built as a scenic route from the start, and it still behaves like one — wide, well surfaced, and explicitly set up for motorcycles.
A road that was designed to be ridden
Most great alpine roads are trade routes that happen to be spectacular. The Grossglockner is the opposite: it exists because someone decided a scenic mountain road was worth building. When a group of Austrian experts proposed a road over the Hochtor in 1924 they were widely mocked — at the time Austria, Germany and Italy between them had around 154,000 private cars and 2,000 km of long-distance asphalt. What made it happen was the crash of 1929. With unemployment at 26%, the government revived the project as job creation, put 3,200 people to work, and widened the design from a 3 m gravel track to 6 m of proper road.
Construction started at Ferleiten on 30 August 1930 and the road opened on 3 August 1935, going into full service the next day with an international car and motorcycle race. Planners had hoped for 120,000 visitors a year; by 1938 it drew 375,000.
Ninety years on, the operator still treats motorcyclists as a core audience rather than a nuisance, and it shows in the details.
Route at a glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Length | 48 km / 30 miles, 36 bends |
| Runs from | Bruck (Salzburg) to Heiligenblut (Carinthia) |
| High points | Hochtor Pass 2,504 m / 8,215 ft; Fuscher Törl 2,428 m / 7,966 ft |
| Highest point reachable | Edelweißspitze 2,571 m / 8,435 ft, via a 1.5 km / 0.9 mile spur from Fuscher Törl |
| Main viewpoint | Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe 2,369 m / 7,772 ft, overlooking the Pasterze Glacier |
| Toll booths | Ferleiten (north, near Fusch) and near Heiligenblut (south) |
| Season | start of May to start of November (operator) |
| Opened | 3 August 1935 |
Load the full crossing before you leave with the Bruck to Heiligenblut directions.
Riding the road from north to south
The zero point for the road is in the centre of Bruck. From there, granite stones on the right-hand edge display the running kilometre count, and bends and points of interest carry blue information boards. It is a small thing but it makes the road unusually easy to describe to someone else, and unusually easy to navigate without looking at a screen.
The northern toll booth is at Ferleiten near Fusch. Beyond it the numbered hairpins begin and the road climbs steadily toward the Fuscher Törl at 2,428 m / 7,966 ft. From there a 1.5 km / 0.9 mile spur branches off to the Edelweißspitze at 2,571 m / 8,435 ft, the highest point on the whole road. The last section up to it is cobbled, which catches out riders expecting more of the same smooth asphalt — take it steadily, particularly in the wet.
The main road crosses the Alpine divide in the Hochtor tunnel at 2,504 m / 8,215 ft and turns south. A branch leads to the Glocknerhaus and to Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe at 2,369 m / 7,772 ft, the viewpoint named after the visit of Emperor Franz Joseph I and Empress Elisabeth in 1856. It looks straight across at the Pasterze Glacier, the Grossglockner massif, the Glocknerwand and the Johannisberg. From there the road descends to the southern toll booth near Heiligenblut.
What the operator does specifically for motorcyclists
This is where the Grossglockner separates itself from other toll roads. The operator, GROHAG, publishes a list of provisions for riders and they are real ones, not marketing.
At the pay desks there is preferential check-in for motorcycles, with an extra pay point opened for bikers at busy periods. The Information Point beside the Fusch/Ferleiten desks carries brochures with tour descriptions.
There are designated Biker Points at the Edelweißspitze car park and at Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe, with reserved front-row parking. At the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe Biker Point and at the southern end of the Hochtor tunnel there are biker safes: lockers where you can leave a helmet, jacket and gloves while you walk around, which on a hot day is the difference between doing the exhibitions and not bothering.
On the road itself, elliptical markings are painted in blind left-hand bends. The reasoning is spelled out by the operator: a lot of mountain accidents happen when riders cut the bend, meet oncoming traffic and either collide or run wide avoiding it. The markings are there to interrupt that line and pull speed down before the apex. Resurfacing uses high-grip material, sharp-edged crash barriers are being replaced progressively and underride barriers with guide rails have been fitted.
Practical information
Season and hours. The operator states the road is open from the start of May until the start of November and closed through the winter months because the snow makes it impassable. Opening hours change through the season: earlier and longer in midsummer, shorter from September. As of August 2026 those are the published arrangements — confirm current dates and hours on the operator's own site before you travel, because the opening date in particular depends on snow clearance.
Night driving ban. Outside the published opening hours there is an official ban on night-time driving. This is not a soft rule: if you arrive after the last entry time, you will not get on the road. Plan your day so you are through the toll booth with hours to spare, not minutes.
Toll. The road is tolled in both directions and the charge depends on vehicle type. There are day tickets, multi-day and season options, and a motorcycle tour ticket that bundles the Grossglockner with the Gerlos and Nockalm roads plus a reduced ticket for the Villacher Alpine Road. Advance tickets are available through the ÖAMTC, ARBÖ and ADAC motoring organisations. Prices are revised annually, so check the operator's current rates rather than any third-party figure. Licence plates are captured by video camera at the cash points.
Other rules. Camping is not permitted along the road and there are no approved campsites in the immediate vicinity. A day ticket lets cars and motorcycles use the road several times on the same day, and if you stay overnight in accommodation on the road you do not pay again at the exit.
Fuel and weather. Fill up in Bruck or Heiligenblut. At 2,500 m the weather changes fast and the operator's own safety guidance is blunt about conditions directly affecting grip — take it seriously on the descent.
Gear notes
A Grossglockner day is long, cold at the top and dependent on making the toll booth in time, which shapes what is worth carrying.
Cold and altitude both move tyre pressures, and this road has enough elevation change to make that measurable. Understanding why pressure drops in cold weather is useful background, and a Bluetooth TPMS sensor gives you live readings so you are not guessing on the descent to Heiligenblut.
Timing matters because of the entry deadline, so a route on the bars rather than in a pocket is worth having. Offline navigation on a unit such as the JADO S6 riding system keeps the day on schedule in valleys where signal comes and goes — and if you are still deciding what that hardware category does, the riding system explainer covers it.
Finally, power. With the Biker Points, exhibitions and the visitor centre, this is a road where you stop a lot, use a camera a lot, and end up nowhere near a socket. A 100 W bi-directional fast charger handles the phone, camera and intercom between stops.
FAQ
Is the Grossglockner High Alpine Road a toll road?
Yes. There are toll booths at Ferleiten in the north and near Heiligenblut in the south, and the charge depends on vehicle type. Day, multi-day and season tickets exist, along with a motorcycle tour ticket covering several Austrian alpine roads. Rates are revised each year — check the operator's site for the current figures.
When is the road open?
From the start of May until the start of November, according to the operator, with the exact opening date set by snow clearance. Daily hours vary through the season, and there is an official ban on driving the road at night outside those hours.
How high does it go?
The through route crosses the Hochtor Pass at 2,504 m / 8,215 ft. The highest point you can actually ride to is the Edelweißspitze at 2,571 m / 8,435 ft, reached by a 1.5 km / 0.9 mile spur from the Fuscher Törl. The last stretch is cobbled.
Is it difficult to ride?
No. It is a wide, well-maintained scenic road with 36 bends over 48 km, resurfaced with high-grip material and fitted with guidance markings in blind left-handers. The demands are altitude, cold and traffic rather than technical difficulty. It is far more forgiving than Gavia or the narrow Swiss passes.
What can I combine it with?
The tour ticket points you at the Gerlos and Nockalm roads. Heading south and west, Timmelsjoch is the obvious next toll road, and from there it is a short hop to Stelvio and the Italian passes.
Sources
- Prices and opening times, Grossglockner Hochalpenstrassen AG — grossglockner.at
- Travelling by motorcycle, Grossglockner Hochalpenstrassen AG — grossglockner.at
- Grossglockner High Alpine Road, Wikipedia — en.wikipedia.org
